YOUR CART

Reflective Learning Blog

This first week, we discussed many different topics, all relating to writing or reading in one way or another. One that really stuck with me was that in order to improve in anything (during the discussion, reading and writing were the subjects) you must push yourself to practice. In order to gain a skill, or develop yourself in any particular area, you must keep doing it.

Whether or not you enjoy reading or writing is irrelevant. Of course, you should strive to find enjoyable aspects in the thing you practice, but in order to improve, practice is the only route to success. Perhaps, when you practice (and subsequently improve), you will be able to enjoy the topic. People that say they hate writing or reading often are not at a high enough level to truly understand the depths and complexities of the art of reading or writing. They will look at the task at face-value and immediately decide 'I don't like this; I'm not doing it.' Once you put a bit of effort into it, though, you may just find that that thing you so despised is actually quite enjoyable.

​Overall, practice won't make you perfect. It may not even help you to enjoy reading or writing. By the end, you could still very well hate the activity, but you will be better. If you consistently put quality time and effort into improving your reading or writing skills, you will be a completely different reader or writer by the end. Practice is the best, and only, way to progress.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading through this reflection on reading, writing, and practicing. You started by telling the reader what moment in class stood out to you, and then moved into elaborating on how that activity/conversation got you thinking about yourself as a reader and as a writer! This is exactly what Andy and I are looking for in these blogs.

As for suggestions for revision/future blogs, I did have just one thing! Unless I missed it, I don't believe that I saw a link to an outside source. Basically, what we're asking for is to find an article, webpage, or video that extends the conversation just a little bit, and integrating it into the post. This is for a couple reasons, but the most honest one is that we really want you to take that extra time to reflect on your learning and put it into context with something else out there in the world.

With that addition, this would be a perfect example of what the genre would look like. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, and I'm looking forward to reading your next post.